Decision Making !

Friends, it is said that good managers are those who make quick decisions. Which means, they are willing to take responsibility for their decisions. The question is, what is it that prevents us from making decisions? What's the fear? Is it the fear of taking responsibility, or the fear of failure or making mistakes?

Decision making becomes a phobia for many people due to the faulty thinking that goes behind it. They think that, by not making a decision they will not make any mistake. Now, they have already made a mistake by making this decision. Secondly, they think that there is only one right answer. This may not be the case, but thinking this way makes the prospect of decision-making overwhelming. One should learn to face the simple fact that one cannot foresee the future and can take a decision based only on the facts available at the time of taking the decision. So one should just go for it!

Friends, taking a decision is an intuitive process, one cannot learn it in any school. Decision making ability makes people independent. The more decisive one becomes, the more integrated one becomes. There are possibilities of erring, but in this process one learns as well. Life is combination of trials and errors.

There are a few things which can be learnt only if one is courageous enough to make mistakes. One should only remember not to make the same mistake again.

Friends, whenever one has to choose, one should always choose the unknown, because the known has already been lived. One should never miss the unknown. Even if one has to suffer, it is worth it … it always pays.

Have a Great Day Friends!

Truth is God!

Once there was a revolution in a country. The revolutionaries were busy changing everything. They were determined to destroy religion as well.

In that context they arrested a poor old man and brought him to the Court.

They asked the poor man, “Why do you believe in God?”

The poor man replied, “Gentlemen, I do not believe in God, even then God is there. What should I do now?”

Then they asked him, “How do you know that He exists?”

The old man said, “Ever since I opened my eyes, I have seen none except Him!”

The revolutionaries were very angry and told him, “Soon we are going to kill 

all your monks and nuns. What do you have to say?”

That old man laughed and said, “As God may wish! ”

Then they said, ‘We have decided to destroy all signs of religion and will not leave any sign of God in this world.”

The old man replied, “My son, this is a very difficult job that you have undertaken. How will you destroy all signs? Whatever remains will always confirm His existence. At least you will be there and you will confirm His existence. It is impossible to eliminate God, because He is all-pervading!”

Moral of the Story ….

Friends, we misunderstand and think of God as a man. God is not a person. He is in the whole existence.

The question of believing in God does not even arise. Do we believe in light? We see light as soon as we open our eyes. Therefore, belief is a supporter of our ignorance. Any blind faith with eyes closed and covered cannot take anybody towards the truth. Only the discrimination with eyes fully open can take a man to the truth.

Friends, there is no other God except the truth.

Have a Great Day Friends!

Osho Nourishing the Ego!

Friends, please reflect on these wonderful words of OSHO ….

“….The mind is not interested in the obvious. The mind is not excited by the simple, because deep down, the mind is nothing but your ego, and the nourishment of the ego comes from the challenge of the far away. The more arduous, the more torturous, the more difficult an achievement is, the more the mind becomes fascinated. It is ready to go to the farthest star, not even bothering what it is going to get there….that is irrelevant….

I remember a remark by Edmund Hillary, who was the first man to climb Everest, the highest mountain in the Himalayas. When he came down, the entire world’s media was interested to know what his experience was and what he had gained. Before him, for almost a hundred years, hundreds of mountaineers had destroyed their lives in the same effort of achieving Everest. Edmund Hillary could not answer.

For a moment there was silence, and then he said, “Just because it is there, a challenge to humanity …that was enough for me to risk my life. I have not gained anything, I have not experienced anything…!”

The truth is, whenever I think of Edmund Hillary standing on the Everest, alone, he appears to me to be embarrassed, utterly idiotic. And in fact he did not stay there longer than two minutes. For those two minutes he risked his life. This will give you an insight into the human mind and its workings. That which is available cannot be made an achievement. And that which is not available, the farther away it is, the more nourishment there is to the ego.

The obvious, that which you already have, has no interest at all for the mind. That’s why millions of people have lived on the earth and missed their own being. They traveled far and wide, world travelers – Marco Polo, Columbus – they tried to conquer the whole world, like Alexander the Great. But they forgot one thing ….they have not even known themselves; therefore, the question of conquering does not arise….”

Reflections

After his evening talks, Gautam Buddha used to tell his disciples, "Now go and do the last thing before you go to sleep."  For his disciples, ‘The last thing before going to sleep’ was the meditation, so all the disciples used to get up and leave for meditation.

One day it just happened that a prostitute and a thief were also in the audience and when Buddha said, "Now it is time for you to go and do the last thing before you go to sleep," the thief simply thought that the Buddha has endorsed his business. He told himself, "What am I doing here? This is the time to do my business before I go to sleep!”

The prostitute also looked around and thought, “The Buddha is really very perceptive, because when Buddha said this, he was definitely looking at me. So, I must  go and do my business before I go to sleep!" She bowed down and left in a hurry…!

Moral of the Story …

Friends, a simple statement, but three different people perceived it as three different meanings. In fact, there could also have been many more meanings, because even if the message is the same, what was heard and perceived could not have been the same. Generally, simple things are made complicated, the obvious is forgotten and taken for granted. Most of the times, one avoids thinking about it.

Friends, why do we call things ‘objects'? ‘Object' simply means, that which obstructs, hinders, prevents. Our mind is conditioned for certain perceptions, hence it is like an object, it is a barrier, hence one cannot move further beyond its conditioning. Mind is like an object, like a wall and not like a door.

The one who is like a mirror, pure, unreflective, centered in itself in deep blissfulness, only can perceive life in a right perspective. Life comes and goes but one’s mirror-like awareness remains eternally. One’s consciousness is the only thing in the whole of existence which never changes.

Have a Blissful Day, Today & Everyday Friends!

10 Life Changing Tips Inspired By M K Gandhi

By Robert Piper

Here are ten of my favorite life changing tips inspired by one of the greatest leaders of the 20th century - Mohandas Gandhi.

1. You Can Change The World

"Be the change that you wish to see in the world."

2. Think Positive

"A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes."

3. Cherish Life

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."

4. Don't Give Up 

"First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, and then you win."

5. Practice Compassion

"An eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind."

6. Live In Harmony 

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."

7. Forgive

"The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong."

8. Meditate

"I have so much to accomplish today that I must meditate for two hours instead of one."

9. Serve Others

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."

10. Live Life To The Fullest

"In a gentle way, you can shake the world."

Published May 8, 2012 at 4:00 PM

Published May 8, 2012 at 4:00 PM

About Robert Piper 

Robert Piper is a meditation instructor, happiness enthusiast and creator ofmonkinthecity.com. He studied with a Taoist monk for nine and half years, and traveled extensively to Asia and Australia in search of other meditation teachers. He has spent nearly a decade researching, studying and collecting information on various meditation systems of Asia. Robert is currently in the process of writing a book on meditation to make the topic more accessible for stress relief, health, and happiness.

Website: monkinthecity.com

Twitter and Facebook

Maturity!

A small boy with a penny clutched tightly in his warm little hand entered a toyshop. As soon as he saw various toys, he started driving the salesman to distraction asking him to show this and that and everything…. He was unable to make up his mind on any of those toys.

“Look here, my boy” said the storekeeper finally, “What do you want to buy for a penny …the whole world with a fence around it?”

The boy thought for a moment, smiled and then replied, “O.K. Let me see that …!”

Moral of the Story ….

Friends, most of us are like that small boy.

To grow old is not to grow up, to become old is not to become mature. Maturity has nothing to do with the age at all. Maturity has something to do with becoming more and more conscious, more and more silent, aware, becoming more and more watchful of what one is doing and why, where one is going and why.

Friends, maturity comes through understanding the difference between that which is possible and that which is not possible.

Have a Great Day Friends!

My lover- My Liver

It's important & Interesting! Good to know. When someone shares something of value with You and you benefit from it, share it with others. From an email sent by Francis Joseph

--

First Parent the Child in You- Swami Sukhabodhananda

Parent the child in you first

Swami Sukhabodhananda

Teach yourself and parent yourself for there is a child in you, which needs to grow up.

Then you can empower your children also. Be like a player; when the opponent takes the ball, he goes after it like a game with a challenging attitude. Life is like a game. Play it wisely and enjoy it. Treat problems like a challenge. In the midst of a challenge, your body, mind and sprit should be alert and alive. One should be more enthusiastic in the midst of a problem, like a player.

If you study the life of powerful people, you will realise that they knew how to convert their hurt or humiliation to their benefit in a pro-active way. Hence, it is imperative for parents to imbibe in the growing children, the art of being pro-active and not reactive. This is a very important value to be inculcated.
Those children to whom the art of being pro-active is not taught, reaction becomes a habit even for insignificant incidents in life and such children start majoring on minor things.

One person, who took part in one of my workshops at Mumbai, got married to his fiance after about eight years of courtship. Once, after four months of getting married, the husband reprimanded his wife for waiting for a bus at the bus shelter late at night. The husband was concerned about the welfare of his wife and therefore scolded her for standing alone at the bus stop and that too late in the night. The lady, got so upset, that as soon as she reached home, she locked herself in a room, consumed poison and committed suicide.

The above is a real incident from the life of one of my students. If reaction is your habit, you start majoring on minor things. So, it is very important, that parents teach children how it is a healthy asset to be pro-active and how it is a liability to be reactive. This should be taught with examples and the best example is in the parents walking their talk.

Another important dimension that a parent should teach children is to make them understand that just putting 100 percent effort is not enough in life.
In the Indian culture, we say ‘Prayatna’ (effort) and ‘Prarthana’ (prayer). Both are necessary. One may put in 100 percent effort but the final result depends on a factor called grace. 

Despite 100 percent effort, finally what does the magic is a factor called grace. The atheist only believes in effort. There are some people, the so-called religious people, who believe only in prayer.

You need to amalgamate both effort and prayer. The moment you understand that there is a factor called grace, then you become sensitive to help from the invisible hand. So this is an important value you should sow in your child.

Osho: Are You Contented?

Dear Friends, please reflect on these beautiful words of Osho …

Contentment is possible only through Inner Growth …

“…Discontentment is human, contentment is divine. It is the great privilege of human being to be aware of discontent, which means there is a possibility to grow towards contentment. But very few people make any effort towards inner growth. Their whole life is rooted in misunderstandings.

People think, if they have a bigger house or more money or more power or more prestige, if they become famous, then they will be contented. That is sheer nonsense. How can a bigger house make you contented? You will remain the same. In fact, when you are in much discomfort you don't feel much discontent, because your whole energy is involved in fighting with discomforts. 

That's why poor people don't feel so much discontent but rich people feel discontent.

A person who is hungry thinks only about bread and a person who is naked thinks only about clothes, but a man who is well-fed, starts thinking, 'What is this life all about? Why am I here at all?' Such a person starts thinking about the meaning of life and only then a turning point is possible….

Nothing on the outside can ever make you contented. Contentment is possible only through inner growth. Inner growth gives you clarity, transparency and slowly you become a mirror. You start reflecting things as they are and at that moment the growth starts. Your consciousness is becomes richer, more intense, more alive. And it is only through that growth that one day you start touching the world of the divine.

…And that is our ultimate goal, that's what we are all seeking. And unless it is achieved there is no bliss, no benediction, no meaning in life. Meaning happens in life only when god enters in you. Only then there is meaning in life …great meaning …. eternal meaning….!”

Have a Great & Meaningful Day My Friends!!

Inner laziness

The inability to learn something new is a part of inner laziness. Mind is leaking its energy with all its worry and anxiety. If one does not put the wise effort to stop it, then it shows there is inner laziness. Most of us are tired more from mental worry than physical work. When one learns to be happy there is overflowing energy which gives delight rather than leakage. Whenever you overflow, you share and expand. When there is leakage of psychological energy you shrink and struggle to survive. Oh, Mind Relax Please !

Pattern of Life !

The quality of life depends on one’s mind. 

Ultimately it is one’s attitude. 

Most of the times we suffer because of our wrong attitude, our wrong mind. We suffer because we have cultivated a suffering mind. If we create a blissful mind, only bliss will follow.

Everything can be reduced to one’s attitude, to one’s approach towards life. Life can be a source of suffering or bliss… it depends on how one interprets it. 

One has to remember not to go on interpreting life negatively and start interpreting positively.

Even in the darkest night one should go on searching for a star and it is always there. In fact, the darker the night, the more are the stars, the more brilliant they are. 

One should not look at the darkness, but look at the stars, and only then one can see that the darkness is not against the stars. But it gives a contrast, it is complementary. That’s why we don’t see the stars during the day, the day is against them but the night is in total support. 

Death is in support of life.

One should never look for the wrong; if one looks, then it is there. Then the stars start disappearing and there remains only darkness and suffering and hell. One has created it!

If one looks at the stars, the meaning of the darkness is transformed. The darkness becomes the very mother of the stars. The one who can see darkness as the very mother of light, that consciousness that can see nothingness as the source of all, those eyes that can see the thorns as protection for the rose, are religious.

Once one starts looking at the positive in life, all negativity disappears. The things are still the same but a new gestalt, a new pattern arises in the life.

Have a Great Day Today & Every Day Friends!

Potato Chips

A Good Read:

A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with a bag of potato chips and a six-pack of root beer and started his journey.

When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old man. He was sitting in the park, just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to him and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his root beer when he noticed that the old man looked hungry, so he offered him some chips. He gratefully accepted it and smiled at him.

His smile was so pretty that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered him a root beer. Again, he smiled at him. The boy was delighted!

They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but they never said a word.

As twilight approached, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave; but before he had gone more than a few steps, he turned around, ran back to the old man, and gave him a hug. He gave him his biggest smile ever..

When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy?"

He replied, "I had lunch with God." But before his mother could respond, he added, "You know what? He's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"

Meanwhile, the old man, also radiant with joy, returned to his home. His son was stunned by the look of peace on his face and he asked, "dad, what did you do today that made you so happy?"

He replied "I ate potato chips in the park with God." However, before his son responded, he added, "You know, he's much younger than I expected."

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of hcaring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. People come into our lives for a reason, a season, or a lifetime! Embrace all equally!

Have lunch with God.......bring chips.

From an email fwdd by Francis Joseph

Gratitude for Past. Plan for future

A king was once passing by a nursery that belonged to a poor gardener. It was the most beautiful way to the palace. The king stopped his horse and looked at the poor gardener. Although many a times he had passed that place, today he could not contain his curiosity. 

The man looked so old and yet he was preparing small plants and working the whole day on those plants. Those were in fact, the saplings of huge trees which at least would take one hundred years to grow and bloom. The lifespan of those trees is also very long.

So, the king was little puzzled thinking, “This old man himself looks more than hundred years old. How can he expect to enjoy the flowers and fruits of these trees? Why is he working so hard in the hot sun at this age?”

The king approached the old man and said, ”I watch you every day, and I see how hard you work. I want to ask you a question. Are you sure you will be able to see the flowers and fruits of these plants?”

The old man laughed and humbly said, ”No Sir, I will not be able to see the flowers and fruits of these plants. But do you see those huge trees, thousands of years old behind my hut? They are the similar kind of trees. They provide me flowers and fruits!”

The king said, “I couldn’t understand you. Please answer my question.”

Then man said, ”If my parents and forefathers had also thought that they would not be able to get the benefit of the plants which they nursed, there would not have been those trees today. I am not thinking about myself. I am thinking about my forefathers and also about my future generation, as I owe them something.”

The old man further said, ”If my forefathers were so patient and happy to think that the future generation whom they could never know, would enjoy the fruits and the flowers ….Do you think I am a worse human being than my forefathers? Can’t I think also of someone, far away in the future, being thankful towards me …?”

The king wrote in his biography, “The old gardener has shocked me with his patience, with his infinite unconditional love, compassion and trust.”

Friends, somebody, some day, is bound to see the flowers and fruits of the saplings which we plant today!

Monday Motivator 5

I asked God to take away my pride. And God said "No". He said it was not for him to take away, but for me to give up.

I asked God to make my handicapped child whole. And God said "No". He said her spirit was whole, her body was only temporary.

I asked God to grant me patience. And God said "No". He said patience is a by-product of tribulations. It isn't granted, it is earned.

I asked God to give me happiness. And God said "No". He said he gives me blessings, happiness is up to me.

I asked God to spare me pain. And God said "No". He said suffering draws you apart from worldly cares and brings you closer to me.

I asked God to make my spirit grow. And God said "No". He said I must grow on my own. But he will prune me to make me fruitful.

I asked for all things that I might enjoy life. And God said "No". He said I will give you life, that you may enjoy all things.

I ask God to help me love others, as much as he loves me. And God said, Ah, finally you have the idea!

The Cab Ride!!!

The Cab Ride

(By a cab driver)


I arrived at the address and honked the horn.
After waiting a few minutes I walked to the door and knocked.. 
'Just a minute', answered a frail, elderly voice.
I could hear something being dragged across the floor.

After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 90's stood before me. 
She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned
on it, like somebody out of a 1940's Movie.

By her side was a small nylon Suitcase. 
The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. 
All the furnitures were  covered with sheets.

There were no Clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters.
In the corner was a cardboard box filled with Photos and  Glassware.

'Would you carry my bag out to the car?' she said. 
I took the suitcase to the Cab, then returned to assist the woman.
She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb.

She kept  thanking me for my kindness. 'It's nothing', I told her..
'I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother to be treated.'

'Oh, you're such a good boy, she said. When we got in the cab, 
she gave me an address and then asked, 'Could you drive
through downtown?'

'It's not the shortest way,' I answered quickly..
'Oh, I don't mind,' she said. 'I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice.

I looked in the rear-view Mirror. Her eyes were glistening.
'I don't have any family left,' she continued in a soft voice..
'The doctor says I don't have very long.'
I quietly reached over and shut off the Meter.

'What route would you like me to take?' I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me
the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator.

We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived
when they were newlyweds.She had me pull up infront of a furniture
warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a Girl.

Sometimes she'd ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and
would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, 'I'm
tired. Let's go now'.

We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building,
like a small convalescent home,with a driveway that passed under a portico.

Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were
solicitous and intent, watching her every move.
They must have been expecting her.

I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. 
The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.

'How much do I owe you?' She asked, reaching into her Purse.

'Nothing,' I said

'You have to make a living,' she answered.

'There are other passengers,' I responded.

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.

'You gave an old woman a little moment of joy,' she said
'Thank you.'

I squeezed her hand, and then walked into the dim morning light.
Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life..


I didn't pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly lost in thought. 
For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had
gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift?
What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away?


On a quick review, I don't think that I have done anything
more important in my life.

We're conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments.

But great moments often catch us unaware-beautifully wrapped in what
others may consider a small one.

PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT YOU DID, 
OR WHAT YOU SAID ~BUT~THEY WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER
HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL


You won't get any big surprise in 10 days if you send this ahead.
But, you might help make the world a little kinder and more compassionate 
by sending it on and reminding us that often it is the random acts of
kindness that most benefit all of us.


Thank you, my friend...
Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we
are here we might as well dance.

 From an email forwarded by B. Venkatesh

Story. In Search of Freedom!

There is a beautiful story in Mahavira's life….

Once Mahavira visited Vaishali, one of the great cities of those days. In Vaishali there was a great thief, who was training his only son, in the 'art' of stealing. The thief told his son, "Remember, you are free to do everything, but don't go close to that man Mahavira. I am a master thief, but even then I avoid him, because he is dangerous. Some magical power surrounds him, and once you are caught in it there is no way out. So remember, go everywhere but avoid the campus where Mahavira is staying!"

So, the boy avoided Mahavira's campus for many days, but the temptation was natural.... It was worth testing. And one day the boy went a little closer to the campus where Mahavira was staying with his disciples. Mahavira was delivering his discourse to his disciples. Mahavira was saying, “…In paradise, there are angels who are very beautiful, but their feet are always pointing in the opposite direction as compared to their body….” The boy thought, Mahavira was just telling a fictitious story and he escaped from there.

That very night the boy and his father were both caught stealing. The king knew that, the father won’t open his mouth at any cost hence, the king ordered his men to concentrate on the son. There was a possibility that they may get some important link from him.

King’s strategy was that, the boy was given intoxicating drugs, so he slept for hours, completely unconscious. He was then taken to the most beautiful room in the palace, where there were all beautiful girls to serve him, bring him delicious food, drinks, etc. When the boy woke up from his deep sleep, he thought, "I am dead and have reached paradise. This is the paradise Mahavira was describing….wonderful girls, tasty food, all the comfort….Everything is great."

But suddenly he looked at the girls’ feet and immediately realized that there was some conspiracy, This cannot be a paradise, because the girls’ feet are normal, not turned in the opposite direction, as Mahavira had described….!"

Then those beautiful girls tried in every way to persuade him to extract the information saying that, if he divulges all the information, they will permanently take them to the paradise, as this is only the reception. They wanted him to confess about all the crimes, thefts, etc. committed by his father and him. But now he only kept smiling at them….!

He said, "Now, I am a disciple of Mahavira. Ask the king to befool others, not me! Just passing by I heard one sentence from him and it has saved me today."  There was no proof, so finally both the father and the son had to be released.

Mahavira’s magic had caught the boy, he became a great disciple of Mahavira.

Moral of the Story ….

Friends, the total surrender at the feet of the Guru is reaching out in search of one’s innocence, one’s lost childhood, originality, individuality and one’s own freedom…!

Have a Great Day Friends!